New luxury hotel La Bahia includes two restaurants and two bars open to the public

The soon-to-open La Bahia Hotel & Spa aims to be the most luxurious lodging Santa Cruz County has ever seen this fall, but it’s no ivory tower. The cream-colored Spanish Mediterranean-style hotel is crowned by a restored 100-year-old bell tower and features two restaurants and two bars open to the public (plus one for guests only) and a palatial Boasting two large event spaces. The grounds overlook Santa Cruz’s main beach.

La Bahia is the latest property from Ensemble, a Long Beach-based real estate development company that also owns and manages the adjacent Dream Inn and Bernardus Lodge & Spa in Carmel Valley. Currently under construction, the culinary concept is starting to take shape.

You can see two sister stores stacked on top of each other on the left side of the entrance. Low Tide Bar & Grill, located on the ground floor, will seat 86 and be a casual spot open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and later brunch, general manager Markus Krebs said. The focus will be on bar food such as burgers and salads with contemporary flavors, and beer, wine and craft cocktails will also be available.

“Low Tide is going to be a more fun place because it has a High Tide character. There’s going to be a bar scene, live music and fun cocktails,” Krebs said.

High Tide, a sister restaurant dedicated to elegant dinners, will open on the second floor above Low Tide. This 128-seat dining room offers views of Monterey Bay and Santa Cruz Municipal Pier. Krebs pointed out an area in one corner of the restaurant that will serve as a glass-enclosed private dining room. There’s also a small bar with a few seats, intended more for a quick wine tasting than a meal.

The terrace will connect High Tide to the bell tower, the future site of La Bahia’s members-only club, and will feature outdoor seating and one or two fire pits.

Both restaurants will offer Pacific Rim menus with a focus on seafood and influences from Japanese, Hawaiian and California cuisine. The menu will be finalized later this year, in line with the executive chef’s own experience and preferences. The search for that person is expected to begin early this year.

The executive chef will also be responsible for serving meals to guests in the hotel’s two massive event spaces: the 4,000 square foot ballroom on the first floor and the 5,400 square foot rooftop deck on the fifth floor. Krebs said the hotel’s priority is to prepare menus for potential customers booking weddings and other large events in 2026 and 2027.

The hotel lobby will feature another small bar called The Pearl, a London-style champagne bar serving wine and spirits. The idea, Krebs explained, is for hotel guests to meet up with friends and toast the holidays with a selection of sparkling wines, traditional wines by the glass or bottle, and cocktails.

Two dining areas will be closed to the public: the pool area, known as the Plunge, which is available only to hotel and spa guests, and the members area, which is only accessible to members. Plunge has its own bar with a menu of cocktails and poolside snacks, and the members area features a dedicated dining area and bar, as well as a host of amenities available to anyone who pays an annual membership fee. Masu.

All three bars – Low Tide, Pearl and Plunge – have unique drink programs with unique glassware and unique recipes.

La Bahia wants to welcome locals as well as tourists to the hotel, Krebs said. “We encourage the general public and locals to come and visit us, especially these two restaurants,” he said. “The only area that is off-limits to guests is actually the pool area. The rest is open.”

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